Substrate Inspection

ABSTRACT

Various embodiments for substrate inspection are provided.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

The U.S. Government has certain rights in one or more claims of thisinvention as provided for by the terms of Contract No. DE-EE0003159awarded by the Department of Energy—Falcon Program.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention generally relates to substrate inspection.

2. Description of the Related Art

The following description and examples are not admitted to be prior artby virtue of their inclusion in this section.

Transparent substrates such as silicon carbide and sapphire arefrequently used in the fabrication of light emitting diodes (LEDs). Suchtransparent substrates are often polished on only a single side of thesubstrate. For example, the upper active surface is polished and thelower inactive surface remains unpolished. The upper active surface mayalso be patterned with voids or bumps.

It can be difficult to inspect the polished upper surface of thesubstrates described above and any transparent films formed thereon. Forexample, a light beam used by an inspection system will penetrate thetransparent substrate and strike the bottom unpolished surface.Scattered light from the bottom unpolished surface can be collected anddetected by the inspection system along with other scattered light thatis desired to be detected. As a result, the scattered light signal fromthe unpolished bottom surface typically overwhelms the signal from thedefects on the top surface and any transparent films formed thereon. Inaddition, in the case of a patterned substrate, the light will scatterfrom patterned structures formed on the upper active surface and thatsignal will be superimposed on the signal from the defects on the topsurface and any transparent films formed thereon. Therefore, it can bedifficult to detect any defects that might be present on the top surfaceof the substrate or in or on any transparent material formed thereon.

Accordingly, it would be advantageous to develop methods and systems forsubstrate inspection that do not have one or more of the disadvantagesdescribed above.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The following description of various embodiments is not to be construedin any way as limiting the subject matter of the appended claims.

An embodiment relates to a system configured to inspect a substrate. Thesystem includes an illumination subsystem configured to direct light tothe substrate. Patterned features are formed on an upper surface of thesubstrate. The system also includes an objective configured to collectlight scattered from the substrate. In addition, the system includes anoptical element positioned in a path of the light collected by theobjective. The optical element is configured to direct light scatteredfrom the patterned features into a first direction and other scatteredlight into a second direction. The system further includes a detectorconfigured to generate output responsive to only the light directed intothe second direction. The system also includes a processor configured todetect defects on the substrate using the output. The system may befurther configured according to any embodiment(s) described herein.

Another embodiment relates to a system configured to inspect asubstrate. The system includes an illumination subsystem configured todirect light to the substrate. Patterned features are formed on an uppersurface of the substrate. The system also includes an objectiveconfigured to collect light scattered from the substrate, in addition,the system includes an optical element positioned in a path of the lightcollected by the objective. The optical element is configured to directlight scattered from the patterned features into a first direction andother scattered light into a second direction. The system furtherincludes a first detector configured to generate output responsive toonly the light directed into the second direction and a second detectorconfigured to generate output responsive to only the light directed intothe first direction. The system also includes a processor configured todetect defects in the patterned features or to determine one or morecharacteristics of the patterned features using the output generated bythe second detector. The system may be further configured according toany embodiment(s) described herein.

An additional embodiment relates to a system configured to inspect asubstrate. The system includes an illumination subsystem configured todirect light to the substrate. Patterned features are not formed on anupper surface of the substrate. The system also includes an objectiveconfigured to collect light scattered from the substrate. In addition,the system includes an optical element positioned in a path of the lightcollected by the objective. The optical element is configured toselectively direct the collected light into a first direction or asecond direction. The system further includes a detector configured togenerate output responsive to only the light directed into the seconddirection. The system also includes a processor configured to detectdefects on the substrate using the output. During inspection of thesubstrate, the optical element is configured to direct all of thecollected light into the second direction. The system may be furtherconfigured according to any embodiment(s) described herein.

In some embodiments, the systems described herein may be used for defectreview. For example, the optical element may be used for a detailedreview or classification improvement of defects detected on the othersubstrate. Alternatively, the optical element may be replaced with adetector that may be used for defect review and classification. Theoptical element or the detector may be used to sample different portionsof the scattered light to determine differential scatteringcross-section of a defect and this information can be used to classifythe defect.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further advantages of the present invention will become apparent tothose skilled in the art with the benefit of the following detaileddescription of the preferred embodiments and upon reference to theaccompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a cross-sectional view of oneexample of a patterned transparent substrate and various scattered lightfrom different portions of the patterned transparent substrate as aresult of illumination;

FIGS. 2, 2 a, 3, and 3 a are schematic diagrams illustrating side viewsof various embodiments of a system configured to inspect a substrate;

FIGS. 4-7 are schematic diagrams illustrating cross-sectional views ofvarious scattered light from different portions of a patternedtransparent substrate across an image plane of the systems describedherein;

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram illustrating a perspective view of oneexample of incident radiation and scatter definitions;

FIG. 9 a is a schematic diagram illustrating a perspective view ofdifferent examples of scatter patterns from different defect types;

FIG. 9 b is a plot showing differential scattering cross-section (DSC)for different defect types as a function of scatter angle; and

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating a side view of oneembodiment of a system configured to inspect a substrate.

While the invention is susceptible to various modifications andalternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are shown by way ofexample in the drawings and are herein described in detail. The drawingsmay not be to scale. It should be understood, however, that the drawingsand detailed description thereto are not intended to limit the inventionto the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention isto cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling withinthe spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appendedclaims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Turning now to the drawings, it is noted that the figures are not drawnto scale. In particular, the scale of some of the elements of thefigures is greatly exaggerated to emphasize characteristics of theelements. It is also noted that the figures are not drawn to the samescale. Elements shown in more than one figure that may be similarlyconfigured have been indicated using the same reference numerals.

As used herein, the term “substrate” refers to a substrate that may ormay not have one or more layers formed thereon and/or may or may nothave one or more periodic patterns, either topographic (e.g., bumps) ormaterial based (e.g., metal filled trenches on top of a semiconductor ordielectric sample). In addition, “patterned features” as used herein mayinclude topographic or material based patterns. The “patterned features”may also be other and/or aperiodic features on the substrate such asnuisance defects (e.g., nuisance defects called “fish-scale” defects onaccount of their relatively smooth shape) or other features that are notintentionally formed on the substrate. Such “patterned” features mayhave substantially low spatial frequencies (e.g., much lower than thespatial frequencies of typical patterned device features).

Some embodiments described herein may be used for patterned sapphiresubstrates (PSS) based light emitting diode (LED) wafer inspection. PSSare becoming increasingly common in the LED industry as they offerbenefits in light extraction efficiency for a certain type of finaldevice process. Gallium nitride (GaN) may be grown via an epitaxialprocess on PSS. The pattern may include micron size bumps or voids thatare placed at 1 to 3 micron periods. The bumps or voids are produced onthe sapphire surface via a lithographic process. The size, shape, andperiod of the bumps or voids can vary widely. The symmetry of the bumpsor voids may be hexagonal, so as to match the symmetry of the GaNcrystal.

The presence of periodic bumps or voids creates a problem when one triesto inspect the GaN for defects using scattered visible light. Inparticular, the visible light will pass through the GaN and scatter fromthe PSS and from the unpolished backside of the wafer. One way to avoidthis would be to use a wavelength of light where the GaN is opaque(wavelengths less than 365 nm), but many defects in the GaN epi layerlie within or beneath the epitaxial layer, and as a result using awavelength where GaN is opaque would prevent detection of these defects.

A solution to separating the top and bottom surface scattered light foran unpatterned sapphire wafer is given in commonly owned U.S. Pat. No.7,907,269 to Meeks, which is incorporated by reference as if fully setforth herein. The embodiments described herein extend the technologydescribed in this patent to the case of separating the GaN scatteredlight, the PSS scatter, and the bottom surface scatter. The embodimentsdescribed herein may also be configured as described in U.S. Pat. Nos.6,486,946 to Stover et al., 7,535,563 to Chen et al., and 7,907,269 toMeeks and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0085533 to Fosseyet al., all of which are incorporated by reference as if fully set forthherein.

FIG. 1 shows the case of two light beams 10 and 12 striking top surface14 of GaN 16 on PSS 18. The light beams may include two visible beams.For example, one light beam may be in the red spectrum (e.g., 660 nm)and the other light beam may be in the violet spectrum (e.g., 405 nm).The wavelengths of the light beams may vary depending on the compositionof the transparent material and the substrate. In addition, the anglesof incidence at which the light beams are directed to the substrate mayvary depending on the composition of the transparent material and thesubstrate. Furthermore, the two light beams may be directed to thesubstrate at different angles of incidence (e.g., one beam at a normalor near normal angle of incidence and the other at an oblique angle ofincidence such as 70 degrees). As shown in FIG. 1, the PSS includespatterned features 20 formed on an upper surface of the substrate. Inaddition, bottom surface 22 of the substrate is typically not polishedand therefore may have substantial roughness compared to other surfacesof the substrate and transparent material. It should also be clear thatthe embodiments described herein are applicable to the case where onlyone beam is used, or more than 2 beams are used.

The scattered light from the individual surfaces and interfaces isindicated in FIG. 1. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, light beam 10 maybe specularly reflected from the upper surface of the GaN as reflectedbeam 24. In addition, light beams 10 and 12 may be scattered from theupper surface of the GaN as scattered light 26. Light beam 12 maypenetrate the GaN layer and be scattered from the upper surface of thetransparent substrate and the patterned features as scattered light 28.In addition, light beam 12 may penetrate the substrate and be scatteredfrom the bottom surface of the substrate as scattered light 30. Lightbeam 10 may penetrate the GaN surface and scatter from the upper surfaceof the transparent substrate and the patterned features as scatteredlight 29. Light beam 10 may also penetrate the substrate and bescattered from the bottom surface as scattered light 32. The scatteredlight contains information about defects on, within, and below the GaNsurface. Such defects may include, for example, particle 34, microcrack36, and micropit 38, which may have a diameter of about 0.1 um to about1 um. To enable or improve defect detection capability, it is desired toseparate this scatter from the GaN from 1) the scattered tight from thePSS and 2) bottom surface scatter. In the case of a patterned opaquesubstrate, the substrate may be silicon on which LEDs may be grown aswell as with or without it being patterned.

One embodiment of a system configured to inspect a substrate is shown inFIG. 2. The system includes illumination subsystem 40 configured todirect light to substrate 42. The substrate is typically rotated whilethe incident light beam is moved along the radial direction, herebyenabling to scan the whole surface in a spiral fashion. Otherembodiments may include XY raster scan of the sample or the beam as analternative to cover the surface to be inspected. The substrate may be asubstrate such as that shown in FIG. 1 or any other substrate describedherein. The light directed to the substrate may include any of the lightdescribed above. Illumination subsystem 40 may include any suitablelight source(s) at different angle(s) of incidence and any othersuitable optical component(s) such as filters, polarizers, etc. coupledto the light source(s).

The system shown in FIG. 2 is configured to separate light 44 scatteredfrom the three interfaces described above. The system includes anobjective configured to collect light scattered from the substrate. Inaddition, the system includes an optical element positioned in a path ofthe light collected by the objective. The optical element is configuredto direct light scattered from the patterned features into a firstdirection and other scattered light into a second direction. Forexample, as shown in FIG. 2, reflective optical objective 46 directs thescattered light beam from substrate 42 onto optical element 48 that actsas a spatial light modulator or spatial filter.

In one embodiment, optical element 48 may be a micro mirror array (MMA)or liquid crystal on silicon. In this manner, the optical element may ormay not be configured for articulation and/or actuation (movement) ofindividual elements of the optical element. For example, although theoptical element may include an MMA that has individual mirrors capableof being moved, the optical element may include a static optical elementthat in of itself includes no moving parts (although the system may becapable of moving the static optical element (e.g., to switch out theoptical element)). For example, the optical element may include a mirrorand a static filter. In another example, the optical element may includea mirror and a static vignetting aperture or filter or a plurality ofstatic apertures (e.g., rings of chrome-on-glass) configured toselectively block or redirect certain regions of the light incident onthe optical element.

The optical element would ideally be placed at the reciprocal plane fromthe sample under test, i.e. at the Fourier or near-Fourier conjugateplane from the sample (e.g. one focal length above the objective in thecase of the infinite conjugate embodiment shown in e.g. FIG. 3 a),although it is to be noted that it will likely be more practical toplace it further away and preserve functionality, as shown in mostembodiments described herein.

The scattered light from the ordered array of patterned features on thePSS produces a diffraction pattern that has the same symmetry as thehexagonal PSS pattern. At the output of the primary mirror of thereflective optical objective, the diffraction pattern of the PSS issuperimposed upon the scatter from the GaN defects and the scatter fromthe bottom unpolished surface of the sapphire wafer. This is shown inFIG. 4 in which dots 50 are the diffraction orders (or diffractionpattern) from the PSS when illuminated by a normal incident beam andscattered light in region 52 is the scatter from the bottom surface ofthe sapphire. Scatter in region 54 is the scattered light from the topsurface of the GaN, while scatter in region 56 is the scattered lightfrom the bottom surface of the GaN. There is no scattered lightcollected in region 58 due to the configuration of the reflectiveobjective shown in FIG. 2.

When the GaN-on-PSS wafer is rotated, the dots 50 of FIG. 4 also rotate,and the resulting diffraction pattern looks to the eye (or a slowcamera) to be a ring as shown by ring 60 in FIG. 5 as the motion of thedots is blurred at slow enough integration times. As described above andshown in FIG. 1, the GaN-on-PSS may be illuminated by both a normal andan oblique beam. The oblique beam produces a diffraction pattern whichis a series of arcs as shown in FIG. 6. More specifically, FIG. 6 showsthe PSS-with-GaN scatter pattern at the output of the primary mirrorwith normal and oblique diffraction and top and bottom surface scatter.FIG. 6 shows the scatter from the GaN top and bottom surface in regions54 and 56 respectively, the scatter from the back surface in region 52,the PSS diffraction from the normally incident beam with rotatingsubstrate in region 60, and PSS diffraction from the obliquely incidentbeam with rotation as arcs 62.

The diffraction patterns described above and any other diffractionpatterns will be incident on the optical element and the optical elementcan be programmed to direct the PSS diffraction pattern out of thescattered light beam into a beam dump or detector as shown in FIG. 2.More specifically, the optical element is configured to direct light 64scattered from the patterned features into a first direction (therejected light path) and other scattered light 66 (the filteredscattered light beam) into a second direction. Light 64 scattered fromthe patterned features may be directed to element 68, which may be abeam dump or a detector (e.g., a camera) as described further herein.The other scattered light 66 is the scatter from the top surface of theGaN and the bottom surface scatter. This is shown, at the location ofthe field stop described further herein, in FIG. 7 where the bottomsurface scatter from the normal beam is ring 70 and the bottom surfacescatter from the oblique beam is ring 72 at the detector plane or at theimage plane of the objective. The top surface scatter from the GaN dueto both the normal and the oblique beams is represented by dot 74 at thecenter of ring 70.

The top surface scatter from the GaN can be separated from the bottomsurface scatter by placing a field stop (e.g., a pinhole) just beforethe detector, as shown in FIG. 2. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, inone embodiment, the other scattered light may be directed by opticalelement 48 to reflective optical element 76 (e.g., a folding mirror or aturning mirror), which may direct the other scattered light throughfield stop 78 to detector 80. Detector 80 (e.g., a photomultiplier tube(PMT)) is configured to generate output responsive to only the lightdirected into the second direction. In addition, as described above, thePSS diffracted scatter pattern is removed by optical element 48 (e.g.,the spatial filter) at the exit of the primary mirror.

The system also includes a processor configured to detect defects on thesubstrate using the output. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the systemmay include processor 82 that is coupled to detector 80 such that theprocessor can receive the output generated by the detector. Processor 80may detect the defects on the substrate using the output and anysuitable algorithm and/or method to detect the defects. For example, theprocessor may apply a defect detection threshold to the output, andoutput above the threshold may be identified as defects or possibledefects. The processor may be any suitable processor included in anysuitable computer system known in the art.

The defects detected using the output generated by detector 80 willinclude other defects on the substrate. For example, in one embodiment,the substrate is transparent, the patterned features are formed on theupper surface after the upper surface is polished, a bottom surface ofthe substrate is not polished, and a transparent material is formed onthe patterned features and the upper surface. Such a substrate may befurther configured as described above. In such an embodiment, the systemmay include the spatial filter described above (e.g., field stop 78)that is positioned in a path of the other scattered light, and thespatial filter may be configured to block the light scattered from thebottom surface of the substrate and to transmit light scattered from anupper surface of the transparent material, the upper surface of thesubstrate, and defects on or in the transparent material and between thetransparent material and the upper surface of the substrate. In thismanner, in such an embodiment, the defects detected by the processorinclude defects on or in the transparent material and defects betweenthe transparent material and the upper surface of the substrate and donot include defects on the bottom surface of the substrate.

However, the systems and methods described herein may be used forinspection of transparent substrates that do not have a transparentmaterial formed thereon. For example, in another embodiment, thesubstrate is transparent, the patterned features are formed on the uppersurface after the upper surface is polished, and a bottom surface of thesubstrate is not polished. In one such embodiment, the system includes aspatial filter (e.g., field stop 78), which may be configured asdescribed above, positioned in a path of the other scattered light, andthe spatial filter is configured to block light scattered from thebottom surface of the substrate and to transmit light scattered from theupper surface of the substrate and any defects on the upper surface ofthe substrate. In addition, in one such embodiment, the defects detectedby the processor include defects on the upper surface of the substrateand do not include defects on the bottom surface of the substrate.

The systems and methods described herein may also be used for inspectionof opaque substrates. For example, in one embodiment, the substrate isopaque (i.e., opaque to the illumination used by the inspection system),and the defects detected by the processor include defects on the uppersurface of the substrate. In another embodiment, the substrate is opaquewith transparent material formed on the substrate, and the defectsdetected by the processor include defects on or in the transparentmaterial and defects between the transparent material and the uppersurface of the opaque substrate

In another embodiment, the systems described herein can be used fornon-periodical/regular patterned samples to separate good from hadsignals, e.g. by using the optical element as a low or high pass filterfor the length scale of the defects of interest. In particular, there isa use case in which, using a static filter, defects of interest on GaNcan be successfully separated from nuisance defects that are called“fish-scales” (because of their smoother shape) that have relatively lowspatial frequencies. In this manner, the embodiments described hereincan be used to eliminate the signal from patterned device features onthe substrate or unwanted signal from any other “features” on thesubstrate.

In one embodiment, the system includes an additional detector configuredto generate output responsive to only the light directed into the firstdirection. For example, as described above, element 68 may be a detector(e.g., a camera) configured to generate output responsive to only thelight directed into the first direction. In one such embodiment, theprocessor is configured to use the output generated by the additionaldetector to determine diffraction from the patterned features and toadjust the optical element based on the diffraction to directsubstantially all of the light scattered from the patterned featuresinto the first direction and to direct any other undesirable scatteredlight into the first direction. For example, defects in the PSS patternmay pass through the spatial filter (e.g., the field stop) and willappear at the detector (e.g., a PMT). This is because the hexagonalsymmetry of the PSS is broken by a missing or defective pattern bump orpit, and the scatter will not be filtered by the spatial lightmodulator. As a result, the PSS defect will appear at the detector(PMT). This pattern defect can be seen at the epi stage of the LEDprocess since visible light used in inspection systems will penetratethrough the GaN layer. A camera can be placed in the rejected light pathof the spatial light modulator to view the diffraction from the PSSpattern and the scatter from various defects on the GaN epi. This cameraimage can be used to provide feedback for the adjustment of the spatiallight modulator so as to optimize the rejection of undesired portions ofthe scatter pattern (e.g., the PSS diffraction or other nuisancedefects). This camera can also be used to verify that the desiredportions of the scatter pattern are being removed by the spatial lightmodulator. This would be accomplished by first using the spatial lightmodulator to direct the entire scatter pattern into the camera and thenredirecting selected pixel regions to the PMT thereby eliminatingundesired spatial frequencies from the detected signal.

In another such embodiment, the processor is configured to use theoutput generated by the additional detector to detect defects in thepatterned features. In a further embodiment, the processor is configuredto simultaneously detect the defects on the substrate using the outputand use the output generated by the additional detector to detectdefects in the patterned features. In some embodiments, the processor isconfigured to use the output generated by the additional detector todetermine one or more characteristics of the patterned features. The oneor more characteristics may include various metrology-likecharacteristics of the patterned features such as height, width, sidewall angle and the like. In addition, the embodiments may be used todetect defects in the patterned features as described above and then inreview mode the embodiments may be used to revisit locations on thesubstrate at which defects in the patterned features were detected suchthat the processor can use the output generated by the additionaldetector at those locations to determine more information about thepatterned feature defects and/or determine a classification and/or rootcause for the defects. In this manner, the embodiments may determine anyissues with the patterned features in review mode.

In one embodiment, the light directed to the substrate includes lighthaving first and second discrete wavelengths, the first and seconddiscrete wavelengths are directed to the substrate simultaneously at thesame or different angles of incidence, the system includes a beamsplitter configured to separate the other scattered light into firstscattered light having the first wavelength and second scattered lighthaving the second wavelength, and the system is configured such that thefirst and second scattered light is directed to different detectorssimultaneously. This embodiment may be suitable to improve defectclassification capability, based on the fact that two differentincidence angles may be used simultaneously (one for each wavelength)and that the scattering signals differ for different incident angles asa function of the defect type (pits, particles, etc.). The beam splittermay include any suitable beam splitter known in the art. For example, asshown in FIG. 2 a, the system may include beam splitter 84 that isconfigured to separate the other scattered light into first scatteredlight 86 having the first wavelength and second scattered light 88having the second wavelength. As described above, first scattered light86 may be directed through field stop 78 to detector 80. In a similarmanner, second scattered light 88 may be directed through field stop 90to detector 92. Field stop 90 and detector 92 may be configured asdescribed above. The system shown in FIG. 2 a may be further configuredas described above.

In addition, it is possible to separate the different beams (e.g., redand violet beams) after the field stop field stop 78) by using adichroic mirror, narrow band pass filters (not shown), and separatedetectors (e.g., separate PMTs). Other potential embodiments would be tosplit different colors of scattered light with dichroic mirror(s) anddirect each wavelength onto a separate optical element separate MMAs).After reflection from each optical element, the scattered beams would gothrough separate field stops to separate detectors (e.g., separate PMTs)for defect detection and classification. While having increasedcomplexity and cost, the advantage of this embodiment is that eachoptical element can be optimized to reject the maximum signal from thePSS and pass the maximum signal from the defects.

FIG. 3 illustrates another embodiment of a system configured to inspecta substrate. This system includes an illumination subsystem (not shownin FIG. 3) that is configured to direct light 94 to substrate 42.Patterned features (not shown in FIG. 3) are formed on an upper surfaceof the substrate. The illumination subsystem may be further configuredas described above. As a result of illumination of the substrate by theillumination subsystem, light 96 may be specularly reflected from thesubstrate. Light scattered from the substrate is collected by objective98, which may be further configured as described above. Objective 98 maybe an ellipsoidal mirror or a parabolic minor. The light collected bythe objective may be transferred by refractive optical element 100 tooptical element 48. Refractive optical element 100 may include, forexample, a collimating lens. Optical element 48 may be configured asdescribed above. Specifically, optical element 48 is positioned in apath of the light collected by the objective. In addition, the opticalelement is configured to direct light scattered from the patternedfeatures into a first direction and other scattered light into a seconddirection. More specifically, the optical element is configured todirect light 64 scattered from the patterned features into a firstdirection (the rejected light path) and other scattered light 66 (thefiltered scattered light beam) into a second direction. Light 64scattered from the patterned features may be directed to element 68,which may be a beam dump or a detector (e.g., a camera) as describedfurther herein. This other scattered light 66 is the scatter from thetop surface of the GaN and the bottom surface scatter.

The top surface scatter from the GaN can be separated from the bottomsurface scatter by placing a field stop (e.g., a pinhole) just beforethe detector, as shown in FIG. 3. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, inone embodiment, the other scattered light may be directed by opticalelement 48 to reflective optical element 76 (e.g., a folding mirror or aturning mirror), which may direct the other scattered light torefractive optical element 102, which focuses the scattered lightthrough field stop 78 to detector 80. Detector 80 (e.g., a PMT) isconfigured to generate output responsive to only the light directed intothe second direction. In addition, as described above, the PSSdiffracted scatter pattern is removed by optical element 48 at the exitof the objective. The system shown in FIG. 3 may be further configuredas described herein.

In another embodiment, the system shown in FIG. 3 may not includeobjective 98. For example, as shown in FIG. 3 a, refractive opticalelement 100 may be configured to collect light scattered from thesubstrate and to transfer the collected light to optical element 48. Thesystem shown in FIG. 3 a may be further configured as described herein.

Another way to use the systems described above is to replace the opticalelement with a standard mirror and use a suitable plurality of detectorsor a “detector array” (e.g., avalanche photodiode, PMT array, orphotodiode array) in lieu of the MMA and discrete detector approach.When using a PMT array for instance, the scattered light beam from thecollector is expanded so that it covers the entire PMT array. The PMTarray is placed at a similar location as the MMA would be placed in theprior embodiment (Fourier or near-Fourier conjugate plane) and measureseach segment simultaneously.

In most embodiments, if the system is configured to inspect anothersubstrate in which patterned features are not formed, the opticalelement can be configured to direct all of the collected scattered lightinto the second direction so as to maximize the scattering light signalfrom defects on the substrate.

In an additional embodiment, the system is configured to inspect anothersubstrate, patterned features are not formed on the other substrate, thesystem includes an additional detector configured to generate outputresponsive to only the light directed into the first direction, duringreview of defects detected on the other substrate, the optical elementis configured to direct only a portion of the collected light into thefirst direction such that different portions of a differentialscattering cross-section (DSC) from a defect can be sampled sequentiallyby the additional detector, and the processor is configured to useinformation about the DSC to classify the detected defect. In thismanner, the optical element can be used for a detailed review orclassification improvement of defects detected on the other substrate.In that mode, the incident light beam is stopped at a constant radius(track scan) or even at a constant position (on defect dwell), and theoptical element is configured to direct only a portion of the collectedlight into the first direction such that different scattered radiationangles can be sampled sequentially by the additional detector, and theprocessor is then configured to use all the information collected (angledependent scatter) to classify the detected defect. In this manner, thesystems described herein may be used to identify defect types, asexplained in more details just below.

In the semiconductor and other industries, to detect and classify thedefects on a wafer is very critical. The ability to classify the defectsallows to break down the raw defect counts into “defect count per defecttype” statistics in the inspection report. This extra informationtypically allows better and tighter process control. When a tight beamis incident as a focused beam of light on a substrate with a defect(e.g., a particle, pit, bump, etc.), the scattered light in the entireupper hemisphere depends mostly on the following parameters: a)polarization, wavelength, and spot size of the incident light; b) angleof incidence with respect to substrate normal; and c) defect type (e.g.,particle, pit, bump, etc.), size, geometry, and orientation (in axiallyasymmetric defects).

FIG. 8 shows incident light 104 and various scatter definitions, Afocused beam of light 104 is incident on substrate 108 at an angle ofincidence θ_(i) with respect to surface normal 110. The defect islocated at origin 106 of this coordinate system. Reflected specular beam112 is in the plane of incidence, which is defined by the plane which IDcontains the incident beam and the surface normal. The defect scattersinto the entire upper hemisphere 114. A small region of scatteredintensity dΩ, subtends at angle of θ_(s) to the surface normal. Theazimuth angle φ_(s) is the angle between the projected dΩ on thesubstrate and the plane of incidence.

FIG. 9 a shows the scatter pattern in upper hemisphere 116 produced bydirecting 405 nm wavelength light 118 onto a sapphire substrate at a 70degree angle of incidence. FIG. 9 a also shows the differentialscattering cross-section pattern from a) a 600 nm polystyrene latexsphere and b) a 600 nm (lateral dimension) crystal oriented pit (COP).In addition, FIG. 9 a shows specular beams 120 that would result fromthe illumination described above. In this manner, FIG. 9 a shows thescatter intensity distribution for incident light (wavelength 405 nm),due to a particle and COP on a sapphire substrate. It is evident fromthe simulation results that the differential scattering cross-section(DSC) depends on the defect type.

FIG. 9 b shows the simulated DSC versus scatter angle in the incidentplane when ‘P’ polarized (where the electrical field vector is in theplane of incidence), 405 nut wavelength light is incident on a sapphiresubstrate (index of refraction n=1.786) at a 70° angle of incidence. Thecurves correspond to two different defect types on the sapphiresubstrate namely, a 200 nm diameter polystyrene latex sphere (n=1.59)and a 200 nm diameter COP with a 90° vertex angle. It is evident fromthese results that the DSC is dependent on the defect type.

Since each defect type has a unique DSC signature, accurately measuringDSC enables better defect classification. In the embodiments describedherein, systems and methods are proposed to directly measure the DSCwithin a certain numerical aperture (NA) limited by the scattercollector (which could be a reflective or refractive microscopeobjective or an ellipsoidal scatter collector).

FIG. 10 shows a system layout that can be used to measure the DSC usingthe optical element-based review method described above. The systemincludes a light source (not shown in FIG. 10) configured to directfocused beam of light 122 to the top of substrate 124 (e.g., a wafersurface). Scattered radiation 126 from a defect is collected usingscatter collector 128 shown here as an ellipsoidal collector. The lightfrom the scatter collector is collimated using collimating lens 130 anddirected onto optical element 132 (e.g., a spatial light modulator). AMMA such as those commercially available from Texas Instruments may beused as the spatial light modulator. Each micro-mirror in the array canbe individually controlled through software to be set at a +θ tilt stateor a −θ tilt state. This ability to access and control individualmirrors enables creation of a “virtual pinhole” on the surface of theoptical element by setting the micro-mirrors corresponding to thepinhole to a +θ tilt state while the rest of the micro-mirrors are setto −θ tilt state. For example, as shown in plan view 140 of the opticalelement, one mirror 132 a can be set to one tilt state while all theother mirrors are set to a different tilt state. In addition, theoptical element can be used to create a moving pinhole. For example, themirrors can be individually and sequentially set to the first tilt statewhile all other mirrors are set to the different tilt state such thatthe pinhole essentially scans across the mirrors in direction 132 b. Inthis manner, the pinhole can be moved from mirror 132 a to mirror 132 cand any other mirrors included in the optical element. In this manner,the system can create a moving pinhole on the optical element.

The light reflected from the pinhole zone falls on detector 134 (bybeing focused on the detector by focusing lens 136), which may be a PMT.At the same time, the light from the rest of the micro-mirrors isdirected to another optical element 138, which may be a beam dump.Instead of a beam dump, another detector such as a camera can be used asdescribed above for other embodiments. A fast photodetector, e.g., a PMTas shown, can also be used in some embodiments to monitor this rejectedsignal. Thus, the software controlled virtual pinhole that is formed onthe optical element surface can be used to measure the two-dimensionalDSC that is projected onto the optical element. Specularly reflectedlight beam 142 may also be collected and detected or simply directed toa beam dump (not shown). The system shown in FIG. 10 may be furtherconfigured as described herein.

The optical element can be operated in virtual pinhole (VP) mode ornon-virtual pinhole (NVP) mode. During the NVP mode of operation, whichmay be used during defect detection, the entire optical element reflectsthe scattered light into the detector (e.g., the PMT), which enables thetotal integrated scatter (TIS) measurement. Once the defects have beendetected, in order to review and identify the defect type, the systemcan then be operated in the VP mode. During this mode, the radiation iskept incident on the track or defect of interest (DOI) and DSCmeasurements can be made by sampling the DSC of the defect by virtualpinhole sampling. With this measurement, one is able to distinguishbetween a pit or a bump or a particle.

The entire optical element pattern can be refreshed for example at 5000frames/second. Using, this frame refresh rate and 1024×768 extendedvideo graphics adaptor (XVGA) mirror array, depending on the scatteredlight intensity per virtual pinhole, one can sample the entire DSC planewithin approximately three minutes.

This would provide a very simple and elegant way to review the defectswithout much change to the basic optical setup.

An alternative way of operating the optical element is to divide (viasoftware control) the optical element into an annular array oralternatively (for example) a 3 by 3 array, where each section of thearray is switched together. Each section of the 3 by 3 array may containhundreds of micro-mirrors, which are all switched together. Theprocedure for mapping the DSC would be to first direct one segment ofthe 3 by 3 array so that the scattered light falls into the path leadingto the detector and the remaining 8 segments are directed to the beamdump. The segments are then switched during subsequent rotations of thewafer or disk so that each portion of the DSC is measured by the singledetector. The disk or wafer may rotate many times during the measurementof a single segment of the DSC in order to average the signal. The timerequired to measure a single segment will still be substantially fastsince a typical disk or wafer rotates at 5000 to 10,000 rotations perminute (RPM) during measurement. For example, suppose the opticalelement is divided into 9 segments and each segment is averaged for 10rotations at 10,000 RPM. The total time required would be 0.54 secondsfor the measurement of the DSC of a single defect. Of course, theoptical element can be divided into more or fewer segments depending onthe resolution with which it is desired to measure the DSC.

One way to use the systems described above would be to first direct theentire scattered light beam into the detector and then scan the entiredisk or wafer. Once the defects have been located, one can identify thetop ten or twenty defects and go back to those locations and measure theDSC. The DSC can then be used to classify these defects.

In one embodiment, the system is configured to inspect anothersubstrate, patterned features are not formed on the other substrate, thesystem includes an additional detector array, the system is configuredto replace the optical element with the additional detector array duringreview of defects detected on the other substrate such that differentportions of a DSC from a defect can be sampled sequentially by theadditional detector array, and the processor is configured to useinformation about the DSC to classify the detected defect. For example,another way to use the systems described above is to replace the opticalelement with a standard mirror and use a suitable plurality of detectorsor a “detector array” (e.g., avalanche photodiode, PMT array, orphotodiode array) in lieu of the MMA and discrete detector approach.When using a PMT array for instance, the scattered light beam from thecollector is expanded so that it covers the entire PMT array. The PMTarray is placed at a similar location as the MMA would be placed in theprior embodiment (Fourier or near-Fourier conjugate plane) and measureseach segment simultaneously. The advantage of this method is speed asone may not have to stop the spiral scan to dwell at the defectlocation.

Another embodiment relates to another system configured to inspect asubstrate. This system includes an illumination subsystem configured todirect light to the substrate, which may be configured as describedabove. Patterned features are formed on an upper surface of thesubstrate. In one embodiment, transparent material is formed on thepatterned features and the upper surface of the substrate. However,transparent material may not be formed on the patterned features and theupper surface of the substrate. The system also includes an objectiveconfigured to collect light scattered from the substrate. The objectivemay be configured as described above. In addition, the system includesan optical element positioned in a path of the light collected by theobjective. The optical element is configured to direct light scatteredfrom the patterned features into a first direction and other scatteredlight into a second direction. The optical element may be furtherconfigured as described herein. The system further includes a firstdetector configured to generate output responsive to only the lightdirected into the second direction and a second detector configured togenerate output responsive to only the light directed into the firstdirection. The first and second detectors may be further configured asdescribed herein. In addition, the system includes a processorconfigured to detect defects in the patterned features or to determineone or more characteristics of the patterned features using the outputgenerated by the second detector. By defects, we mean variations in thescatter signal for the patterned substrate from the normal scattersignal expected if the pattern was perfect. The processor may be furtherconfigured as described herein. The VP dwell method described above fora defect could be similarly used to review or better characterize a“pattern defect” and its specifics (side-wall angle dimension, pitch,anomalies).

This embodiment of the system may be further configured as describedherein. For example, in one embodiment, the system is configured toinspect another substrate, patterned features are not formed on theother substrate, the system includes an additional detector array, thesystem is configured to replace the optical element with the additionaldetector array during review of defects detected on the other substratesuch that different portions of a DSC from a defect can be sampledsequentially by the additional detector array, and the processor isconfigured to use information about the DSC to classify the detecteddefect. In another embodiment, the system is configured to inspectanother substrate, patterned features are formed on the other substrate,the optical element is configured to direct only a portion of thecollected light into the first direction such that different portions ofa differential scattering cross-section from a pattern defect can besampled sequentially by the second detector, and the processor isconfigured to use information about the differential scatteringcross-section to determine one or more characteristics of the patterndefect. In a further embodiment, the system is configured to replace theoptical element with an additional detector array such that differentportions of a differential scattering cross-section from a patterndefect can be sampled by the additional detector array, and theprocessor is configured to use information about the differentialscattering cross-section to determine one or more characteristics of thepattern defect. The system may be configured in this manner as describedfurther herein.

An additional embodiment relates to another system configured to inspecta substrate. This system includes an illumination subsystem configuredto direct light to the substrate, which may be configured as describedabove. Patterned features are not formed on an upper surface of thesubstrate. The system also includes an objective configured to collectlight scattered from the substrate. The objective may be configured asdescribed above. In addition, the system includes an optical elementpositioned in a path of the light collected by the objective. Theoptical element is configured to selectively direct the collected lightinto a first direction or a second direction. The optical element may befurther configured as described herein. The system further includes adetector configured to generate output responsive to only the lightdirected into the second direction. The detector may be furtherconfigured as described herein. In addition, the system includes aprocessor configured to detect defects on the substrate using theoutput. The processor may be further configured as described herein.During inspection of the substrate, the optical element is configured todirect all of the collected light into the second direction. The opticalelement may be configured in this manner as described further herein.

In one embodiment, the system includes an additional detector configuredto detect the light directed into the first direction. The additionaldetector may be configured as described above. During review of defectsdetected on the substrate, the optical element is configured to directonly a portion of the collected light into the first direction such thatdifferent portions of a DSC from a defect can be sampled sequentially bythe additional detector. The optical element may be configured in thismanner as described further above. In such an embodiment, the processormay be configured to use information about the differential scatteringcross-section to classify the detected defect. The processor may beconfigured in this manner as described further herein.

In another embodiment, the system includes an additional detector array,the system is configured to replace the optical element with theadditional detector array during review of defects detected on the othersubstrate such that different portions of a DSC from a defect can besampled sequentially by the additional detector array, and the processoris configured to use information about the DSC to classify the detecteddefect. The system may be configured in this manner as described furtherherein. In an additional embodiment, during review of defects detectedon the substrate, the substrate is stationary with respect to the systemsuch that a DSC from a defect can be sampled multiple timessequentially. In other words, the system may be configured to dwell at alocation on the substrate such that sufficient measurements of the DSCcan be made. The system may be configured in this manner as describedfurther herein.

Further modifications and alternative embodiments of various aspects ofthe invention may be apparent to those skilled in the art in view ofthis description. For example, various embodiments for substrateinspection are provided. Accordingly, this description is to beconstrued as illustrative only and is for the purpose of teaching thoseskilled in the art the general manner of carrying out the invention. Itis to be understood that the forms of the invention shown and describedherein are to be taken as the presently preferred embodiments. Elementsand materials may be substituted for those illustrated and describedherein, parts and processes may be reversed, and certain features of theinvention may be utilized independently, all as would be apparent to oneskilled in the art after having the benefit of this description of theinvention. Changes may be made in the elements described herein withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention as described in thefollowing claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system configured to inspect a substrate,comprising: an illumination subsystem configured to direct light to thesubstrate, wherein patterned features are formed on an upper surface ofthe substrate; an objective configured to collect light scattered fromthe substrate; an optical element positioned in a path of the lightcollected by the objective, wherein the optical element is configured todirect light scattered from the patterned features into a firstdirection and other scattered light into a second direction; a detectorconfigured to generate output responsive to only the light directed intothe second direction; and a processor configured to detect defects onthe substrate using the output.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein theoptical element is a micro mirror array.
 3. The system of claim 1,wherein the optical element is a static optical element.
 4. The systemof claim 1, wherein the substrate is transparent, wherein the patternedfeatures are formed on the upper surface after the upper surface ispolished, wherein a bottom surface of the substrate is not polished, andwherein a transparent material is formed on the patterned features andthe upper surface.
 5. The system of claim 4, further comprising aspatial filter positioned in a path of the other scattered light,wherein the spatial filter is configured to block light scattered fromthe bottom surface of the substrate and to transmit light scattered froman upper surface of the transparent material, the upper surface of thesubstrate, and defects on or in the transparent material and between thetransparent material and the upper surface of the substrate.
 6. Thesystem of claim 4, wherein the defects detected by the processorcomprise defects on or in the transparent material and defects betweenthe transparent material and the upper surface of the substrate and donot include defects on the bottom surface of the substrate.
 7. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the substrate is transparent, wherein thepatterned features are formed on the upper surface after the uppersurface is polished, and wherein a bottom surface of the substrate isnot polished.
 8. The system of claim 7, further comprising a spatialfilter positioned in a path of the other scattered light, wherein thespatial filter is configured to block light scattered from the bottomsurface of the substrate and to transmit light scattered from the uppersurface of the substrate and any defects on the upper surface of thesubstrate.
 9. The system of claim 7, wherein the defects detected by theprocessor comprise defects on the upper surface of the substrate and donot include defects on the bottom surface of the substrate.
 10. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the substrate is opaque, and wherein thedefects detected by the processor comprise defects on the upper surfaceof the substrate.
 11. The system of claim 1, wherein the substrate isopaque with transparent material formed on the substrate, and whereinthe defects detected by the processor comprise defects on or in thetransparent material and defects between the transparent material andthe upper surface of the opaque substrate.
 12. The system of claim 1,further comprising an additional detector configured to generate outputresponsive to only the light directed into the first direction.
 13. Thesystem of claim 12, wherein the processor is further configured to usethe output generated by the additional detector to determine diffractionfrom the patterned features and to adjust the optical element based onthe diffraction to direct substantially all of the light scattered fromthe patterned features into the first direction and to direct any otherundesirable scattered light into the first direction.
 14. The system ofclaim 12, wherein the processor is further configured to use the outputgenerated by the additional detector to detect defects in the patternedfeatures.
 15. The system of claim 12, wherein the processor is furtherconfigured to simultaneously detect the defects on the substrate usingthe output and use the output generated by the additional detector todetect defects in the patterned features.
 16. The system of claim 12,wherein the processor is further configured to use the output generatedby the additional detector to determine one or more characteristics ofthe patterned features.
 17. The system of claim 1, wherein the lightdirected to the substrate comprises light having first and seconddiscrete wavelengths, wherein the first and second discrete wavelengthsare directed to the substrate simultaneously at the same or differentangles of incidences, wherein the system further comprises a beamsplitter configured to separate the other scattered light into firstscattered light having the first wavelength and second scattered lighthaving the second wavelength, and wherein the system is configured suchthat the first and second scattered light is directed to differentdetectors simultaneously.
 18. The system of claim 1, wherein the systemis further configured to inspect another substrate, wherein patternedfeatures are not formed on the other substrate, and wherein duringinspection of the other substrate, the optical element is configured todirect all of the collected scattered light into the second direction.19. The system of claim 1, wherein the system is further configured toinspect another substrate, wherein patterned features are not formed onthe other substrate, wherein the system further comprises an additionaldetector configured to generate output responsive to only the lightdirected into the first direction, wherein during review of defectsdetected on the other substrate, the optical element is configured todirect only a portion of the collected tight into the first directionsuch that different portions of a differential scattering cross-sectionfrom a defect can be sampled sequentially by the additional detector,and wherein the processor is further configured to use information aboutthe differential scattering cross-section to classify the detecteddefect.
 20. The system of claim 1, wherein the system is furtherconfigured to inspect another substrate, wherein patterned features arenot formed on the other substrate, wherein the system further comprisesan additional detector array, wherein the system is further configuredto replace the optical element with the additional detector array duringreview of defects detected on the other substrate such that differentportions of a differential scattering cross-section from a defect can besampled by the additional detector array, and wherein the processor isfurther configured to use information about the differential scatteringcross-section to classify the detected defect.
 21. A system configuredto inspect a substrate, comprising: an illumination subsystem configuredto direct light to the substrate, wherein patterned features are formedon an upper surface of the substrate; an objective configured to collectlight scattered from the substrate; an optical element positioned in apath of the light collected by the objective, wherein the opticalelement is configured to direct light scattered from the patternedfeatures into a first direction and other scattered light into a seconddirection; a first detector configured to generate output responsive toonly the light directed into the second direction; a second detectorconfigured to generate output responsive to only the light directed intothe first direction; and a processor configured to detect defects in thepatterned features or to determine one or more characteristics of thepatterned features using the output generated by the second detector.22. The system of claim 21, wherein transparent material is formed onthe patterned features and the upper surface of the substrate.
 23. Thesystem of claim 21, wherein the system is further configured to replacethe optical element with an additional detector array to determine oneor more characteristics of the patterned features using the outputgenerated by the additional detector array.
 24. The system of claim 21,wherein the optical element is further configured to direct only aportion of the collected light into the first direction such thatdifferent portions of a differential scattering cross-section from apattern defect can be sampled sequentially by the second detector, andwherein the processor is further configured to use information about thedifferential scattering cross-section to determine one or morecharacteristics of the pattern defect.
 25. The system of claim 21,wherein the system is further configured to replace the optical elementwith an additional detector array such that different portions of adifferential scattering cross-section from a pattern defect can besampled by the additional detector array, and wherein the processor isfurther configured to use information about the differential scatteringcross-section to determine one or more characteristics of the patterndefect.
 26. A system configured to inspect a substrate, comprising: anillumination subsystem configured to direct light to the substrate,wherein patterned features are not formed on an upper surface of thesubstrate; an objective configured to collect light scattered from thesubstrate; an optical element positioned in a path of the lightcollected by the objective, wherein the optical element is configured toselectively direct the collected light into a first direction or asecond direction; a detector configured to generate output responsive toonly the light directed into the second direction; and a processorconfigured to detect defects on the substrate using the output, whereinduring inspection of the substrate, the optical element is configured todirect all of the collected light into the second direction.
 27. Thesystem of claim 26, further comprising an additional detector configuredto detect the light directed into the first direction, wherein duringreview of defects detected on the substrate, the optical element isconfigured to direct only a portion of the collected light into thefirst direction such that different portions of a differentialscattering cross-section from a defect can be sampled sequentially bythe additional detector, and wherein the processor is further configuredto use information about the differential scattering cross-section toclassify the detected defect.
 28. The system of claim 26, furthercomprising an additional detector array, wherein the system is furtherconfigured to replace the optical element with the additional detectorarray during review of defects detected on the substrate such thatdifferent portions of a differential scattering cross-section from adefect can be sampled by the additional detector array, and wherein theprocessor is further configured to use information about thedifferential scattering cross-section to classify the detected defect.29. The system of claim 26, wherein during review of defects detected onthe substrate, the substrate is stationary with respect to the systemsuch that a differential scattering cross-section from a defect can besampled multiple times sequentially.